Day 27: Migas, Raisin Style

Started the day out with my usual oatmeal. It was still very enjoyable, however I am sad to say that I hit the end of my sunflower seeds a little earlier than projected. Just glad I still have plenty of raisins. Speaking of, I decided to try a new twist on Migas for lunch. Migas, for those of you who don't know, is a kind of breakfast dish consisting of torn corn tortilla pieces cooked together with scrambled eggs. It hit me that I obviously had the ingredients for this, but I wanted to make it a little more interesting. So I decided to see what raisins would taste like if I scrambled them into the mix. I first microwaved them in some water to loosen them up, and then threw them into the skillet with the beaten egg and torn corn tortilla pieces. I really did not know what to expect. But it was definitely a nice touch, sweetening it up and adding a variety of flavor I have not yet experienced during the challenge. I also whipped up a quick batch of refried beans again, and together it made for one of my better meals. Cost: 25 cents.

Then tonight, running out of ideas, I made a stew that was not one of my greatest inventions, but filling nonetheless. I combined water with a touch of bean broth, 1/2 serving of Ramen noodles and seasoning, 3/4 cup pinto beans, 1 cup brown rice, 2/3 cup shell pasta, 2.5 oz. cubed potato, 1 oz. carrot, and 1 oz. cabbage. It was definitely a little carb-heavy with the noodles and pasta, making for a heavy feeling, maybe even "hard to digest" kind of meal. But it did the job on the survival front. Cost: because of the number of ingredients, 46 cents. 

Just three more days to go! Not sure what it was about today, maybe the poor execution on the stew concept, but I'm definitely feeling ready for this to be over. But I've learned so much I'm going to take with me beyond the 30 days. The fact that I can cook amazing-tasting meals for under a dollar will definitely be a practice I will take with me past the finish line. For that matter, the fact that I can cook any amazing-tasting meals is the shocker, not being much of a cook at all to begin with!

Prayer focus: Pray for one of the villages in South India where we do a lot of ministry. I received an email from our pastor there today requesting prayer for a difficult situation. He writes: There is a school in the village among high caste people, some of our children (Dalits) are studying in that school 8th to 10th class [grade]. But recently there are some problems that took place in the school due to the caste system, between Dalit children and high caste children. This school is in a high caste section of the village. The high caste children are not happy to give these dalit children a place to sit along with them. They are saying bad words and insulting them by using horrible words toward them. Much worse, they have beaten these dalit children 5 times. These children complained to the teachers and to the administration, but there is no use. These high caste children warned the teachers. These dalit students' situation is not good in in [this village]. Please pray for peace in [this village] my brother, we are also praying for this. They need your prayers. So many upsetting things are going on there with this issue, please pray.

Estimated Savings for Day 27: It's interesting, I'm so far removed from what my usual routine would have been like before the challenge started, I really don't know how to estimate any longer. I will just say at this point, I would not be surprised if I had eaten out today, and might have spent about $7 on such an outing. Add this to my normal estimated daily grocery cost of $7, subtract $1 for today's actual cost, and I've saved $13 toward my orphanage donation today. My running total is now up to $413.41.